Innovation Research & Development Lab Intern

About the Role

Trace3 is seeking an Innovation Research & Development Lab Intern to support the Innovation R&D Lab. This role involves building and maintaining Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud environments for incubator prototypes, proofs of concept, and minimum viable products (MVPs). The intern will work with R&D engineers, develop practical cloud engineering skills, and gain exposure to emerging technology areas.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and configure AWS environments from provided designs, templates, and checklists to support prototypes, proofs of concept, and MVPs.
• Learn core AWS lab standards, including compute, storage, networking, and identity and access management.
• Deploy vendor and open-source technologies for evaluation, such as security, identity, data, and AI tools.
• Prepare test environments, sample data, and basic validation scripts for proofs of concept and technical reviews, and capture results.
• Automate small lab tasks using scripting and learn infrastructure as code tools.
• Document build steps, configurations, and lessons learned.
• Track and report resource usage and cost for assigned environments.
• Troubleshoot environment issues and escalate blockers.
• Prepare notes with takeaways and follow-up questions from team meetings, technical reviews, and vendor briefings.
• Complete a capstone project, such as a documented test environment for a technology under evaluation, and present it to the team.
• Operate within approved lab accounts, with R&D engineers owning security, access, and cost controls.

Requirements & Tech Stack

• Enrollment in the Junior or Senior year of an undergraduate program.
• Pursuing a field of study applicable to the internship, such as computer science, information technology, cybersecurity, cloud computing, or a related field.
• Fundamental understanding of cloud computing concepts (virtualization, storage, networking, shared responsibility model).
• Basic familiarity with Linux, the command line, and at least one scripting language (Python, Bash, PowerShell).
• Hands-on AWS experience or a foundational certification like AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner is ideal but not required.
• Familiarity with Git and infrastructure as code tools is a plus.
• Interest in cybersecurity, identity, AI, or agentic technologies is a plus.
• Excellent technical documentation and artifact creation skills.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better.
• Academic or professional/internship experience working in a professional setting is a plus.
• Ability to work independently and accept direction.
• Willingness to learn new technologies and ask questions.
• Self-motivated with a customer mindset and desire to help people.
• Enthusiasm for technical problem solving with attention to detail.
• Availability to work 40 hours per week throughout the internship.

Estimated Pay Range: $18 USD - $27 USD